Palayan City to tap cold storage facility of onion farmers for vaccine storage

PALAYAN CITY, Philippines — The Palayan City government has tapped a facility operated by a large farmers group in Nueva Ecija for the possible storage of vaccines against the coronavirus disease (COVID-19).

Mayor Adrianne Mae Cuevas said the facility is operated by the onion farmers belonging to the Katipunan ng mga Magsisibuyas ng Nueva Ecija or Kasamne.

“The vaccines will be delivered directly to the cold storage facility. We have to prepare other things like ice boxes and dry ice,” Cuevas told the Inquirer.

She said they have asked British pharmaceutical firm AstraZeneca for an advance order of its vaccines worth P50 million.

Cuevas said a committee would create rules and regulation of the vaccine roll-out that would prioritize lawyers, social workers, physicians and the onion farmers.

The Nueva Ecija government would purchase 300,000 doses of AstraZeneca vaccines to inoculate 150,000 residents, each receiving two doses, according to Gov. Aurelio Umali.

/MUF

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